Ocheho handball tourney starts June 12

The 2nd edition of the Sam Ocheho Invitational Handball Championship will hold from June 12 to 21, the Lagos State Handball Association has said.

This year’s edition is expected to feature 17 teams each in the men’s and women’s categories.

Sponsor of the championship Sam Ocheho, a former handball player who is also the patron of the association, told newsmen on Wednesday in Lagos that cash prizes have been introduced into the competition to reward the efforts of the teams.

“Handball was popular in the 1980s but it has now lost its popularity, hence the need to sponsor a competition that will revive the sport. We can’t leave it all to the government to organise,” Ocheho said.

“The first edition in 2012 featured just eight teams but this year’s edition will feature 17 men’s teams and 17 women’s teams, making it the biggest handball tournament in Nigeria. And unlike in the maiden edition where the players got only trophies, the winners will go home with cash prizes at this year’s edition.”

He added that the Lagos teams that won the 2012 National Sports Festival used the maiden edition of the Ocheho tournament to prepare.

“This year, the Lagos teams will do the same by using championship to prepare for the festival hold in Calabar later in the year,” he said.

The winners in both the men’s and women’s categories will go home with N300,000 each, while the second-placed teams will each have N200,000. The third-placed teams will get N100,000 each.